Archive for the ‘neck pain’ Category

Are you aware of the types of massage we do, the benefits and why we keep offering it for your health problems?

Massage is perhaps one of the oldest healing traditions. Many cultures – including the Ancient Greeks, Egyptians, Chinese and Indians – were convinced of the therapeutic properties of massage and used it to treat a variety of ailments.

Massage is the application of manual techniques to the soft tissue to mobilise them to maintain flexibility. Massage is especially effective in breaking compensatory pain postures and patterns. For example, a tension headache is often self-sustaining because the pain makes the person clench the affected muscles even harder, which, in turn, creates more pain. A thorough neck and shoulder massage can reduce muscle tension and break the pain cycle.

Massage for treatment of some disorders

Modern studies have shown that massage can be used to successfully treat a variety of disorders, including:

anxiety

arthritis

back or neck pain

soft tissue injuries

chronic pain

constipation

depression

headache

high blood pressure

insomnia.

Benefits of massage

One of the immediate benefits of massage is a feeling of deep relaxation and calm. This occurs because massage prompts the release of endorphins, the brain chemicals (neurotransmitters) that produce feelings of wellbeing. Levels of stress hormones, such as adrenalin, cortisol and norepinephrine, are also reduced. Studies indicate that high levels of stress hormones impair the immune system.

Some of the physical benefits of massage include:

reduced muscle tension

improved circulation

stimulation of the lymphatic system

reduction of stress hormones

increased joint mobility and flexibility

improved skin tone

speedier healing of soft tissue injuries

heightened mental alertness

reduced anxiety and depression.

Different types of massage

Typically, the massage practitioner uses either oil or talcum powder to allow their hands to slip over the person’s skin. Sometimes, a sheet or thin piece of cloth might be used for the same effect.

The different types of massage may include:

Aromatherapy – essential oils made from selected flowers and plants are added to the massage oil for their particular therapeutic properties. For example, the scent of sandalwood is thought to reduce nervous tension.

Baby massage – can help to treat constipation, colic and sleeping problems. Studies have found that regular massage helps premature babies to gain weight at a faster rate.

Reflexology – massage of the feet can encourage healing in other parts of the body.

Therapeutic – also known as ‘Western’ or ‘Swedish’ massage. One of the most popular forms of massage in Australia, this technique is designed to promote relaxation and improve blood circulation.

Are you sick and tired of feeling aches and pains, with no particular hope for a better future? No wonder depression and anxiety are linked with chronic pain conditions. Did you know that natural therapies are situated to support your condition – whatever it is – and help you on the road to healing?

Looking for a great remedial massage clinic? Our bright, bubbly, caring new pracci will support you in getting well – with her amazing skills of remedial massage. We have experience is supporting you deal with:

Have you heard of the term neuroplasticity and wondered what it means? No, our brains are not made of plastic. However, it does refer to the neural pathways in our brains can be as malleable as plastic allowing our brain to adapt to different circumstances. This means that each signal that enters our brain follows a particular pathway. This pathway can be altered by a change in behaviour.

Recently there has been several case studies to confirm the suggestion that chronic pain is not so much a true indication of current pain but that neural pathways have been developed in the brain to re-affirm the original pain that was experienced. Therefore, the pain which we perceive as chronic pain is not a true indication of anatomical pain but a memory of past pain experienced. Neuroplasticity suggests that neural pathway that has developed can be altered via different input.

There have been several cases which have successfully abated their chronic pain to minimal or none ultimately changing their lives. This has been achieved via activating the neural pathway pattern and flooding the brain with another sensory input. This in turn allows an alternative neural pathway to develop. Each time the new neural pathway is reinforced allows for the new pathway to develop and the old pathway (of pain) decreases in strength and slowly dissipates. Literally turning the old statement of if you don’t use it you lose it to an advantage!

Alternate sensory input may be light or sound. That is, by flooding the neural pathway with another direction to go in each time chronic pain is experienced stimulates new neurons to develop. If this new neuron pathway is reinforced regularly throughout the day the experience of pain has been reported to significantly reduce over a 6 week period.

Chronic pain is usually associated with osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis or other degenerative conditions. However, chronic pain is actually classified after 3 months of experiencing pain in the same region consistently. Therefore this includes sports injuries which are often exacerbated by repetitive movements or sitting stationary for long periods of time (often work related). When this starts to happen reactive muscles can be a factor.

Reactive muscles is the concept of when one muscle is switched on it essentially bullies other muscles that switch off i.e. muscles are reactive towards one another as opposed to firing when appropriate. Reactive muscles can create dysfunctional movement patterns when the body moves. When this is done repetitively it can be reinforced and put strain on muscles which can lead to events causing injury. Upon injury acute inflammation and pain is experienced which is the body’s warning system to rest that area. However, when the acute inflammation dies down is a crucial stage to change the reactive pattern of muscles before the neuronal network of ‘pain’ is laid down and reinforced altering the way the body moves. This pattern can start to reinforce itself in a negative way.

By switching off the reactive muscles allows for any neuronal networks for ‘pain’ to not be reinforced thus reducing the experience of pain. This can be done by kinesiology. Essentially kinesiology identifies and activates a negative neuronal pathway, floods it with a positive stimulus allowing a new neuronal pathway to form i.e. neuroplasticity.

Our Kinesiologists at New Leaf are all multi-skilled and have a combined 28 years experience in kinesiology:

Madonna Guy 20 years
Georgia Kilpatrick 8 years

Kinesiology is a process which helps us to access the innate knowledge within the body. It’s hard to explain, but it uses muscle testing which accesses what your body needs to heal… We can use kinesiology to support:

Learning Problems. Our practitioners do a process called LEAP and NOT which support better processing of information for our kids with auditory processing issues, dyslexia, ADHD etc

Behavioural Issues: We all support the nervous system to cope better with behavioural problems – there are many reasons for this, and kinesiology can help to target what’s going on with the brain, gut, immune system and start the process of rebalancing our kids…

Endocrine/Hormonal Issues. Within the processes of kinesiology there are ways to help to re-boot the hormonal systems of the body, which are often activated by a huge stress/trauma or a toxic overload of some sort. Kinesiology can help to target the cells/organs which are dysfunctional and re-balance the energy in these organs. Are you sick of Infertility? PMT? Pain? Being grumpy? Depression?

Immune Balancing: There are kinesiology processes which support boosting the parts of the body associated with better immunity, thereby helping the body have less symtoms of allergy, intolerances, cold and flu…

LEAP: Learning Enhancement Acupressure Programme – this process helps to re-integrate pathways in the brain that are dysfunctional. The entire process may take anywhere from 5-20 hours depending on how neurologically out-of-whack the body is.

NOT: Neural Organisational Technique – this process re-organises the neurology in the body and can be used to support structural problems such as jaw and hip pain, scoliosis, whiplash and neck problems, chronic back pain. Just about all arthritis starts with an imbalance in the body.

Energetic Healing: When our energy is out of balance, ‘blockages’ occur in the body. Kinesiology can target ”weird energy” like chakras, auras, figure 8 energies, negative attachments that are causing problems for you overall.

Nutritional Kinesiology: Do you absorb your food? Supplements? Protein? Carbohydrates? Sugars? Kinesiology can find out which organs are affected negatively by your foods and supplements and help your body accept and absorb nutrition better.

Toxicity Work: We can use kinesiology to find the pathways in the brain, liver, kidneys which are being blocked by toxins such as lead, mercury, cadmium, aluminium… This can cause chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, just about any health problem.

We are continuing our tradition of fabulous Deep Tissue/Remedial Massage at New Leaf Natural Therapies…

Are you having pain in your neck? back? shoulders? Let’s have a think about what’s going on… the muscles are tightening, they are getting dehydrated and ‘gluey’ and they shorten. They start pinching the nerves, start pulling the ribs out of whack, create nerve pain… goodness me, given that 70% of Aussies have back and neck pain regularly – we could all do with a fantastic massage regularly…

Our massage therapists have lots of experience in different techniques that will start to reset your muscles back into normal shape. Given their nutritional and naturopathic experience they may also recommend products that help with chronic pain such as:

Fibroplex for muscle pain and fibromyalgia

Kaprex for chronic pain

Inflavonoid Intensive care for acute pain..

It really isn’t that hard to get muscle problems, nerve pain, fibromyalgia on the right track to health. We’ll probably recommend a programme which will even save you lots of $$$ too… but that’s up to you.

We now have 2 practitioners in our clinic who do N.O.T.: Neural Organisational Technique: A kinesiology process which helps to realign the body after whiplashes, injuries, dodgy birth trauma, physical injuries, sporting injuries, dental work. Physical injuries can go onto create problems such as chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia… Find an NOT Practitioner in your area and get realigned today!

N.O.T. has been used in Australia for around 20 years. We have used it in our clinic for:

whiplash

neuropathy

jaw problems

cranial injuries

neck problems

hip problems

scoliosis

spinal cord problems

post-dental pain

head injuries

back pain

thoracic pain

knee problems

hormonal imbalances

ankle pain

twisted pelvis

As you can see, there’s lots of reasons to have a course of N.O.T. treatments. We have lots of experience in N.O.T. and love it! Talk to us today!

Are you sick of spending lots of money on trying to get long term solutions for your chronic neck pain? Part of the problem may be that specialists only look at their area of expertise – understandable, but not wholistic!

We can provide a 6 point solution to your neck pain:

Musculo-skeletal therapy/remedial massage to relax the muslces and nerves;

Frequency specific microcurrent to reduce the spinal cord inflammation, reduce the inflammation within the discs & joints and support the healing;

Infrared sauna (penetrates 4-6cm inside the body, acting like a ‘heat pack’ all over): these heat the muscles, nerves, tendons, ligaments and bones allowing the body to release toxins and inflammation;

Structural kinesiology to ensure all of the muscles are ‘switched on’ and working properly, make sure the body is structurally aligned correctly and the spinal cord, tailbone, neck and cranial bones are all aligned correctly.

Emotional kinesiology works to release fight and flight patterns that compress the spinal cord, tighten the jaw, create pressure on the cranial bones, throw the shoulders and hips out of whack, and more!

Naturopathic consultations/supplements to provide nutritional, herbal and homoeopathic support to help your body relax long term. We will prescribe high potency, purified supplements to regain the health of your body and to stop the downward slide into further chronic pain.